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During the Renaissance, the boundary between art and science was not as clearly drawn as it is in the information age. One of the key functions of science in da Vinci's day was to accurately and elegantly depict the denizens of the natural world, and nowhere did the scientist-artists shine more than in botanical studies. The Clutius Botanical Watercolors offers a glimpse into the world of 16th-century naturalists, who spent much time "botanizing." This particularly gorgeous collection of original (but unsigned) drawings and watercolors was owned by Theodorus Clutius, a Netherlands pharmacist, and they were used to instruct budding scientists and physicians at Leiden University.

These plant studies are exquisitely detailed and delicately colored, retaining both usefulness and beauty. Every needle on the pine bough is painstakingly rendered. Each pea leaf, tendril, and flower is accurate and dainty. Each plant in the pleasure garden, the kitchen garden, and the wild is drawn and tinted to perfection. This book is a joy to leaf through for botanists, artists, and fans of Renaissance naturalists. --Therese Littleton

Natural History
"...stunning portfolio of rare botanical art...much admired..."

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews   7 of 7 people found the following review helpful: Absolutely Gorgeous!, June 5, 2006 By  Pio (Orange County, CA) - See all my reviews This is a tall book about 12.5 inches (32 cm tall and 24 cm wide) and contains excellent quality presentations of the botanical prints of the collector Clutius [artist(s)unknown]. So you see on each white page an aged parchment that contains the botanical watercolor. The parchments are set on each page with about a one-inch surrounding border of the white background page. All the parchments are very old so their edges are a bit uneven here and there indicating their age and their true paper-making origin. No machine churned out perfect sheets back then. The watercolors themselves are absolutely exquisite and their skilled presentation by the author makes you feel like you are actually paging through the actual collection. She chose 142 watercolors from the collection of 1,800. The artist(s) may be unknown but their skill would have guaranteed them widespread fame today if they had autographed their works. I am a modest collector of botanical books and I just feel so peaceful and content paging through them. This is my favorite book. Even at Amazon's $45 price tag, which I did not pay, I consider this book worth it. Barely, but still worth it! And I am a real skinflint so I don't say this lightly! If you love botanical books, you will treasure this one.  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers:  › See all customer reviews...		Search Customer Reviews